The San Diego City Council proclaimed Tuesday "Ralph Rubio Day" in honor of the pioneering restaurateur who popularized the fish taco.
Rubio, who opened his first eatery with his father in 1983 in Pacific Beach, now oversees the menu for a chain of almost 200 outlets in California, Arizona, Nevada, Colorado, Utah and Florida.
Councilwoman Lorie Zapf, who presented Rubio with the proclamation, called him "the king of the fish taco." She also pointed out that he sponsors one of the largest local beach cleanups.
Rubio said he never thought there could be a Ralph Rubio Day.
"When we first started Rubio's, it was a big part of introducing fish tacos to San Diego, selfishly, because I had to drive to San Felipe [in Mexico] to eat them, and that's five hours away," Rubio said. "And I thought if we had fish tacos in San Diego every day, that would be a good thing."
"I also wanted to [pay] homage to my roots," he said. "My parents are from Mexico and I grew up around a lot of delicious food."
Rubio's now employs around 4,200 people, the entrepreneur said.
For more about the story of the fish taco in San Diego, watch this KPBS News report from 2013:
